Founded as the first Jewish Montessori preschool of Orange County, California, the Olam community has pledged to provide Jewish youth from the entire Jewish community a hands-on educational environment that allows our students the freedom and guidance to fall in love with learning, Judaism, friends, and the possibility of what they can achieve.
The Olam community is comprised of students, veteran educators, parents, volunteers, donors, and community agencies. We work in partnership to honor the long-standing tradition of our Judaic community, while integrating secular innovative programming, and to preserve the unique natural setting of the Montessori classroom.

Aligning with King Solomon’s wisdom, Italian educator and physician Maria Montessori believed that learning should occur naturally and joyfully for each child. She observed that young children learn best in an environment that allows for hands on experiences. The teacher is a link between the child and the prepared environment, and the child is free to fulfill his potential. Most of the educational materials found today in a Montessori classroom were developed by her over 100 years ago and allow children to develop the tools needed for creative learning as well as stimulate mental and manual agility. Each child works at his/her own pace.

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Our Team

Dawn Kreisberg is an innovative educator, leader and inspiring mentor to her peers. For over 30 years, she has specialized in teaching, creating new educational practices, and leadership development. Her past experience includes Early Childhood Director at Harkham Hillel Hebrew Academy Day School in Beverly Hills for 7 years, the Education Director of the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta, Georgia for over 7 years and the Director of Gan Israel Preschool in Atlanta for 5 years. Dawn has extensive experience in curriculum development, principals and practice of education, adult supervision and mentoring. She is a current member of NAEYC (National Association of Education of Young Children) and CAEYC (California Association of Education of Young Children), the Covenant Foundation in New York and the Center For Initiative For Jewish Education (CIJE), in New York. Dawn holds a Masters Degree in Jewish Education with a specialization in Early Childhood Education and Administration/Principal credentials from the Siegal College of Judaic Studies. Dawn is the loving and proud mother of four children. She lives in LA with her husband and her youngest son who will be a senior in High School this year. Her hobbies include spinning, canoeing, hiking, cooking and reading. Dawn is the Director of Olam.

Sonya Neutel was born in Cape Town, South Africa, where she graduated from the University of Capetown with a Bachelor of Arts degree. After completing her degree she lived in Israel, where she was enrolled in the WUJS (World Union of Jewish Students) program and worked as an intern at the University of Jerusalem. She worked as a travel consultant for 17 years. She is a nurturing mother of three children who went back to school to further her education as a teacher. She completed her teaching internship from 2009 -2010 at the Monarch Bay Montessori Academy, and has completed her training as a certified Montessori teacher from the Montessori Teacher Academy in Dana Point as well as at the Center for Jewish Montessori. Sonya is a co-founder of Olam and will be starting her sixth year as a lead teacher at the school.

Sandhya Batra has been in the field of teaching and education for more than 25 years. She is a fully certified Montessori teacher and completed her Montessori Training in 1983 from the renowned Bal Bharti Training Institute in New Delhi, India. In addition, she has a B.A. in English and Political Science from Delhi University and a Bachelor of Education in English and Social Studies. She researched behavior and psychology in preschool children from different backgrounds and helped them learn with different educational tools at the N.C.E.R.T. Delhi. Sandhya has experienced so much joy in teaching children and is particularly passionate about the preschool age group. Her vast experience in teaching is predominantly in Montessori schools and has ranged from preschool to High School in both private and public schools. During her spare time Sandhya enjoys being with her family. Her special interests are drawing, painting, and cooking. She is the mother of two children. Sandhya will be starting her sixth year at Olam this Fall as a lead teacher and we feel blessed to have her on our staff.

We welcome Sam to Olam. This is her first year as an assistant in a Montessori environment and she brings experience working with children from various early childhood programs. She received her early childhood credentials from Norco Community College. Sam enjoys hiking,swimming and listening to music.

Testimonials

We had both our kids go to Olam in the last 5 years. It’s a very warm and loving environment for kids and parents. Our kids learned a lot during their time there, they developed many skills quickly and they were always happy to go every morning. Now that is true testament of how great Olam is when kids want to go to class every single day including on the weekends!!

-Michael Atias

If you are looking for a warm, loving and nurturing preschool, Olam is the place for your child. The Montessori approach develops their independence and allows each child to progress at their own pace. The mixed-age classrooms provides an ideal environment for older children to learn to become role models, boosting their confidence, and for younger ones to learn from their peers. Academics are also top notch – my older daughter was fully prepared for kindergarten after she graduated from Olam. Kids also learn to love judaism in fun and practical ways. I couldn’t be happier I found Olam for my kids.

-Elodie Goodman

Our family has been involved with Olam since the school opened its doors six years ago, and we consider it to be like a second home. The staff are very caring, nurturing, and responsible, the children are happy, and they are actually learning! When my older son transitioned to kindergarten his teachers said they could see what a positive impact his experience at Olam had on him. I would recommend Olam to Jewish families of all backgrounds. You will love it!